My birthday falls right in the middle of the holiday season. This year, I had a very nice evening out the night before, but the actual day of my birthday was a work day for most of the employed world. I had the day off, so I spent it by myself. It turned out to be pretty cool. So I came up with five things to put on "the birthday bucket list".1. Sleep late. Skip the gym, turn off your alarm clock and watch “The Price Is Right" in your pajamas. Tell the contestants in the big showcase what they should bid, even though they can’t hear you.2. Eat some form of cheese for breakfast, lunch and dinner. 3. Declare No Worry Day.” No thinking about bills, North Korea, earthquakes or whether or not your car will make it to spring. For one day, rest assured that everything will turn out just fine.4. Bake a tray of your favorite cookies, just for you. Not from scratch. Too much work. Besides, Pillsbury has cookie dough test kitchens, so you wouldn’t want all that research to go to waste, would you? 5. Most importantly, celebrate you! Think of all the great moments you would hav missed in the last year if you hadn't had one more birthday. And think of all the great moments you will have in the upcoming year. Because isn't that what a birthday is really about?

It is just a few days before Christmas and there are no presents under the tree at the Lyon’s den this year. No ribbons, no tags, no packages, boxes or bags. And there won’t be any. This is No Present 2013. It was not intentional, but after the Lyon Financial Meltdown of 2012, there are no more credit cards and no more spending money that doesn’t really exist. For the first time in many years, maybe in my entire life, I am learning to live on what I actually earn, instead of what I hope to earn. It has been tough sledding, as we say in Wisconsin. Real life has been a bit of a buzz kill. Every time I drove down get ahead road, house repairs, vet bills, a major dental procedure and the IRS jumped out in front of me. December rolled around, one more unexpected expense came up and in looking at the budget, it was either bills or presents and the bills won. I kept hoping for a Christmas financial miracle, but when the Mega numbers didn’t materialize, I knew it wasn’t going to happen. So no one on my list, even though they have all been more than nice and some just a little naughty will have a gift under their tree from me. So what is the holiday season like with no frantic mall running and late night wrapping sessions? I wouldn’t be honest if I said I was happy about it. Yet, there have been many good moments. A friend and I were getting together this week for some pizza and she asked if maybe I was too busy, what with Christmas being just around the corner. I wasn’t. We had a wonderful evening catching up.

Even without the shopping and wrapping, it still feels like Christmas. The house is decorated with ornaments that have been given to me over the years. The furnace is working, so my pets and I are warm and cozy, with a roof over our heads. I still get to watch “It’s A Wonderful Life”. On Christmas Eve, my friends and California family will be over. We will have Christmas music on, some food, a few drinks and we will talk about everything that we done and been through together. Christmas Day will be another day spent with food and family. I will feel welcome and wanted, even though I will come empty handed. I am fortunate to have the people I have in my life. This is the year when I have thought a lot about a quote from my favorite Christmas special, “How The Grinch Stole Christmas”:

“Maybe Christmas, he thought... doesn't come from a store. Maybe Christmas, perhaps... means a little bit more!” May we all find that “little bit more” this holiday season.

Christmas at The Lyon's Den this year is going to be very short on presents, but big on good times and Christmas spirit! Just a few decorating ideas if you need a little inspiration or are late getting started.

If you know me, you know I love easy! Take some of your glassware and fill it with small ornament balls and you have instant decoration.

At Christmas, all the barware becomes decoration. Even the martini pticher gets filled with ornaments. Only downside is come Christmas eve, we have to move the ornaments to make the drinks!

I must confess, I probably spend a lot more time on Facebook than I should. I love to watch a cat or dog video, check out some cute baby pictures and yes, occasionally stalk an ex to see if he turned out as dorky as I thought he would.A lot of posts are interesting, humorous and some are even inspirational. Some though, actually make me want to hit the Unfriend button until my finger falls off! So the following is my list of most unfavorite Facebook posts. See if you agree with me or if some of these are yours......

Your lunch: If you cooked it, if your mother cooked it, or your kid cooked it, post it! Anything you or someone you care about creates is worth celebrating! Your pretzel burger from Wendy’s does not fall in that category. Same goes for your happy hour drink, because that one just makes me totally jealous, especially if I am on my way to the gym!The cryptic post: A word of advice. If you want to post about a personal issue that is getting you down, feel free. Facebook has become a community and we can all be there for each other, but posts like, “Why, why?” or “I learned today that nice people always finish last,” make me crazy. Do you want to talk about it or don’t you? I had a friend who inadvertently posted something in exasperation during a horrible business meeting that sounded like a suicide note, causing several of his friends to call and text all freaked out and worried. If you really don’t want to go into at least some details about it, don’t post it!Your whine: I don’t mean Cabernet here people! There are many people out there who are facing some truly serious issues during this holiday season. Health, financial, family, just being alone. Life is not easy and everyone deserves the occasional post about a hard day at work or a fender bender, but complaining about the DVD player in the bunk of your tour bus not working while you are off playing rock star does not fall into this category. Getting paid for doing something you love is something everyone dreams of, so hearing about how hard your life is while you are doing it, makes most of sick. Yes, some of my fellow musicians, I am calling you out, but they are not alone in this habit. If you have your health, if you have people who love you and a roof over your head, you are way ahead of a lot of people in this world. Stop using all your Facebook time to tell us about how hard it is to go to work every day and complaining because you have to mow your lawn. Many people would love a job to go to and home to live in.

People who use Facebook to shamelessly promote their band and blogs: Oops! Wrong list! THOSE are my favorite posts!